14/07/2026
📢 Statement by Cllr Sarah L Wood
Leader of the Reform UK Group, Kirklees Council
Cllr Andrew Cooper released this amendment of our proposal detailed in the press article below, without consulting me, without consulting any other Council Group Leader outside the Rainbow coalition he is leading, without consulting Steve Mawson, the CEO of Kirklees Council, or the Legal Officer or the Head of Governance.
⚖️ Constitutional Concerns
In addition, the amendment proposal Cllr Cooper brought to the Press before anyone else he purports to be compromising with is not aligned with Kirklees Council Constitution Article 7.5.
The only way for the Term of any Leader of the Council to be changed is through Constitutional Change set out in Article 15.2 of the Constitution. Inconvenient for Cllr Cooper and his Rainbow coalition, as this would have to happen AFTER the Leadership Election this Wednesday.
🎓 It is perhaps ironic that, after repeated criticism of Reform councillors' lack of experience and constant lectures on the Council's Constitution and Procedure Rules, it now appears that those same constitutional provisions have been better understood by many of the Council's newest members than by some of its longest-serving members—including Cllr Andrew Cooper, who has served as a councillor for no less than 27 years.
⏳ A 10-Month Leadership?
Changing any Leader's term of office to 12 months after filibustering a Leadership Election by two months already would create an effective term of just 10 months.
There is no realistic possibility of any Leader having sufficient time to deliver meaningful change in that period.
📰 This Was Not a Concession
This was not a "concession", nor a compromise.
This was a press stunt, not conducive to reaching agreement, commensurate with similar behaviour from some members of the 31-member Rainbow coalition he leads.
🤝 Our Position Has Not Changed
We have and will continue to offer the hand of friendship to all Members of Kirklees Council, both now and beyond the Leadership Election on 15 July 2026.
🤝 Working in Good Faith
The Leader of the Conservative Group made it clear that he wanted the two largest political groups to make every reasonable effort to work together before deciding where his group's votes for Leader should be cast.
We have consistently attempted, in good faith, to work constructively with Cllr Andrew Cooper, the Green Group and the coalition he leads.
Despite those efforts, despite our continued willingness to engage, and despite examples such as this making constructive dialogue incredibly difficult throughout, no agreement has been reached.
As I have already made clear, the time has now come for the Conservative Group to get off the fence and decide who they believe should lead Kirklees Council, rather than continuing to vote against both candidates.
If Reform UK leads the Council, we will:
✅ Work cross-party wherever we are aligned, on an issue-by-issue basis.
✅ Apply our Reform Councils Principles.
✅ Always centre our decisions around the largest possible cross-section of Kirklees residents.
✅ Work in partnership with the hardworking officers of Kirklees Council, who come to work every day under difficult circumstances and constraints, to transform Kirklees Council positively for our borough and its residents.
Our focus remains exactly where it should be: delivering stable leadership, responsible governance and better outcomes for the people of Kirklees. 🇬🇧
Councillors will meet for a third time to try to elect a new leader - and a coalition group has offered a 'concession' aimed at breaking the deadlock
